Knitting-machine.



B. TQSTEBER.

KNITTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-11909. I 1,148,871 Patented Aug. 3, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

COLUMBIA FLANDGRAPH Co-nvAsmNa'ro-N, D. c.

B. T. STEBEH.

KNITTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-I1. 1909.

1,148,871. Patented Aug. 3, 1915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

5 119.6. 2 a5 5 m 2% 4 J 23 fl' 3 2 ill II I wmwm I 6W f i 3 7MW 1 c51 ma n STATES Fran rice.

BERNARD T. STEIBER, OF UTICA, NEW YORK.

KNITTING-MACHINE.

vention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

, This invention relates to improvements in knitting machines, and has particular refer ence to accessibility of operating parts for purposes of inspection and manipulation, and the essential object in view is the provision for ready access for the purposes stated while guarding against access by foreign substances. I

With this and further objects in view, as will in part be herein stated and in part will become obvious, the invention comprises certain novel constructions, combinations and arrangements of parts, as will be hereinafter disclosed and claimed.

In the accompanying drawing: Figure l is a top plan view of a fragment of. a knitting machine, embodying the features of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation thereof. Figs. 3 and aare vertical, sectional, views taken respectively on the planes indicated by lines 33 and 4let of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of the slide and its guard shelf detached.

Fig. 6 is a detail, vertical, cross section through the guard shelf, taken approximately on the longitudinal central line of one of the adjustingslots. F ig. 7 is a cletail horizontal cross section through" the upper end of one of the slide supporting posts, the section being taken on the plane of the upper face of the top plate of the slide, and a fragment of the top plate being illustrated, the bottom plate being indicated in dotted lines. Fig. 8 is a similarview of the same, taken ontheplaneof the under face of the bottom plate, and a fragment of the bottom platelbeing shown in inverted plane, the top .plate being indicated in dotted lines. Fig. 9 illustrates a modification.

In the knitting machine art it is usual to construct the operating cams and other operating parts in .confined areas and more or less inclosed and inaccessible in order to Specification of Letters Patent.

' Application ma August 11, 1909. Serial No. 512,407.

avoid depositingof dust, lint and other foreign matter on such operating parts, and consequently when some cam, for instance, gets out of order or fails toproperly operate'for any cause, the cam, if only one is employed on the machine, is examined under difficulties, and if a number'of cams are employed, several of them may have to be examlned to discover which is out of order, which increases the difficulty and labor of making repairs.

To obviate these difficulties and to render less liable the depositing of foreign substances on the cams or other working parts, I have devised the present invention which will be readily understood by'reference to the accompanying drawing, in which 1 indicates the usual cylinder of a circular machine mounted on the bed plate 2 and formed with the needle grooves 3 in which reciprocate the needles 4, under the action of cams 5 and 6. As many cams 5 and 6 are provided as are'adapted for the size of the particular machine, all carried by the usual revolving cam ring 7 which may have its outer edge engaged by clamp 8, as many such clamps being spaced about the ring and carried by the bed plate 2 as preferred. For each cam 5, a standard or upstanding bolt 9 is fixed to ring7 and extends upwardly through a sleeve 10 formed integral with or otherwise carrying cam 5.

A coiled spring 11 surrounds standard 9 and is interposed between ring 7 and sleeve 10 for supporting the sleeve, and the upper end of standard 9 is threaded and provided with a thumb nut 12, adapted for adjustment of cam 5, said nut engaging sleeve 10 at its upper end.

Cylinder 1' is formed with the usual retaining spring receiving groove 13 in the upper portion of which may be arranged the usual retaining spring 14, although said spring may be omitted if preferred.

For each cam 5 an inspection window is provided'and carried by ring 7, each window consisting of a slide 16'carrying a retaining guard shelf 17. Each slide 16 is preferably made up of .a frame 18 surrounding and carrying a transparent plate 19, of glass, mica or other transparent material. At each end of slide 16, a supporting and guiding post 20 extends upwardly from and is fixed to ring 7 each post 20 extendin to a point above shelf 17, and being for-me at each side with a longitudinal groove 21 into which the respective end edge of frame 18 isslid, a post 20 being positioned between each two of the frames 18, one groove 21 being engaged by one end of one frame 18 and the other groove 21 being engaged by the opposite end' of the other frame 18. A groove 22 is formed transversely in each post 20 near the upper end thereof for purposes hereinafter stated.

Shelf 17 consists of an upper plate 23 and a lower plate 21, the upper plate being slidably mounted relative to the lower plate, and plate 24: being formed integral with or fixed toframe 18. Plate 23 is formed with slots 25, 25, through which extend the shoulders of screws 26, 26, engaging plate 24 and adapted to be tightened for firmly but slidably retaining plate 23 in position during operation. Plate 23 is provided with a spring pressed detent or bolt 27, extending through the material of the plate, and positioned toenter a recess or aperture 28 in plate 24: when the plate is in its outer position and to enter an aperture or recess 29' in plate 2 1 when plate 23 is in its inner or operative position. Bolt or detent 27 extends upwardly from plate 23 through a housing 27 fixed to plate 23, and atits upper end is provided with an operating knob 27 by which the bolt is adapted to be manually operated. A guiding nut 27 is preferably threaded into the lower end of housing 27 and apertured for the free passage of the lower portion of bolt 27. A washer or other suitable element 27 d is fixed to bolt 27, 'ust above nut 27 and a spring 27 surrounds bolt 27 between washer 27 and the upper end of'housing 27 for pressing the bolt 27 downwardly. Plate 24 is formed at each end with a semi-circular notch 30 adapted to accommodate the respective post 20, so that said plate fits snugly about onehalf of the post, the other half being engaged by the next contiguous plate 24:. Each plate 23 is formed with a notch 31 which is semi-keyhole-shaped, so that when the ends of two plates 23 meet, a key-hole aperture appears therebetween, as seen in Fig. 1. The enlarged portion of notch 31 is adapted to lie flush with notch 30 of plate 24: when the parts are being assembled, so that both plates 23 and 24 may slide downwardly along the post until they reach their lowermost position, which is when plate 23, is in the horizontal plane of groove 13, whereupon the lower edge of frame 18 will have come into contact with the upper surface of ring 7, and plate 23 will have been brought into line with groove 22, and as the restricted portion of post20 produced by groove 22 is adapted to snugly fit the-reduced portion of notch 31, plate 23 may be slid horizontally with an edgewise movement until the edges of the re 23 outwardly thereby until the enlarged portions ofnotches 31" register with their respective posts '20, and then lifts the shelf upwardly, and thus withdraws frame 18, sliding the same upwardly along grooves 21. The particular window section in question is thus easily and quickly withdrawn without in any way affecting any of the other, parts of the machine, and when the repair has been completed, frame 18 is slid down grooves 21 until it contacts with ring 7, and plate 23 is slid over into'contact with cylinderl; whereupon the parts are again in operative position without affecting any of the other parts.

Each of the window sections, as illustrated, is preferably segmental when applied to a circular machine, but the sections of course will be shaped to conform to any machine to which they may be applied, the present invention being obviously applicable to any of the known types of knitting machines, and may be applied t other parts, without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention.

In addition to the function of permitting inspection of the working parts, it will be observed that the window sections, without reference to their transparency, serve as guards for preventing any, oil from being thrown from the machine by centrifugal force, as would otherwise occur, and it is obvious that such spattering of oil as would occur without the sections would be disastrous to fabric near the machine. For instance, where a row of the machines are operating, but for the guarding window sections,.it would be very easy to spoil considerable cloth upon other machines or in nearby baskets by spotting of the same with grease, iron oxid, and other dirt and foreign substances projected radially from the cams and other operating parts, and thus ingyan additional adaptation of the inven- I tion, I have shown in Fig. 9 the usual posts 20, engaged by frame 18 to which is hinged the inner frame 19 carrying transparent plate 19". Any adaptable latch18 is provided for securing frame 19 in its closed position. When manipulative access to a cam is. desired, it is only necessary to unfasten latch 18 and swing frame 19 outwardly upon its hinges. Obviously, this hinged frame may be merely added to the sliding frame, or. it may be adapted to an independent structure, or a portion of the window section may otherwise be rendered openable.

lVhat I claim is 1. In a device of the class described, the combination, with a cylinder having needle guiding means, needles therefor, a cam for actuating said needles, and a ring for operating the cam, of longitudinally grooved, upstanding posts carried by saidring, and a casing section for the cam slidingly and detachably engaging the grooves of said posts.

2. In a device of the class described, the combination, with a cylinder having needle guides, needles in said guides, a cam for actuating said needles, and a ring foroper'ating the cam, of longitudinally grooved, upstanding posts carried by said ring, and a casing section for the cam slidingly and detachably engaging the grooves of said posts,

' said section having a transparent portion affording visual inspection of the cam.

23. In a device of the class described, the combination, with a cylinder having needle guides, needles in said guides, a cam for actuating said needles, and a ring for operating said cam, of posts extending upwardly from and carried by the ring and spaced from the cylinder,and a casing section for the cam detachably carried by the'posts and comprising a vertical portion, a horizontal plate fixedly carried thereby, and a plate adjustably carried by the fixed plate and adapted to be adjusted toward and away fromthe cylinder.

4. In a device of the class described, the

combination, with a cylinder having needle guides, needles in said guides, a cam for actuating said needles, and a ring for operating said cam, of posts carried by the ring, a

slide detachably engaging and carried by said posts, and a shelf carried by the slide and comprising a plate fixed to the slide, a plate slidingly carried by the fixed plate and adapted to he slid toward and'away from the cylinder, means for securing said slidingly carried plate in a given position, and means adapted to form a locking engagement between the slidingly carried plate I and the posts.

5. In a device of the class described, the combination, with a cylinder having needle guides, needles in said guides, a cam for actuating said needles, and a ring for oper- I ating the cam, of upstanding posts carried by said ring and spaced about the same, each of said posts being formed with a longitudi- I nal groove at each side and a transverse groove substantially at its upper end, a slide detachably and slidingly engaging the facing longitudinal grooves of each two' posts, a transversely disposed plate fixedly.

carried by the slide and formed with a notch at each end snugly fitting the respective posts, a slide-plate slidingly carried by said fixed plate, a detent for determining the extent of sliding movement of the slide-plate, 1

and slot and bolt connecting means cooperating therewith for securing said slide-plate in its adjusted positions, said slide-plate being adapted to be adjusted inwardly into contact with the cylinder,'and said slide-plate being formedat its ends with semi-key-hole notches, the enlarged portion of each of said notches being of the same radius as the notches of the fixed plate and being adapted to be brought into register therewith when the parts are being assembled, and the restricted portion of the notches of said slideplate conforming in contour to the restricted portion of the posts formed by the transverse groove, said slide-plate being thus formed with end portions adapted to enter said transverse grooves when the slide-plate is adjusted into contact with the cylinder.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

BERNARD T. ,STEBER. Witnesses:

ALBERT G. JoNEs, J. EDWIN FrscUs.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0'. 

